Thermodynamics and Money Fun

So, I got my IRS refund in the mail yesterday.

Rather than paying off a substantial chunk of what I owe the fine people at Discover, I may be turning it into a new air conditioner & heater.  The TECO auditor (Richard - looks a bit like the actor who played Sphinx in "Gone in 60 Seconds" - very personable and knowledgeable dude) has just been here and pointed out that the 2.5 ton a/c unit we've got here at GMBAN is running at nearly its full rated wattage, but only heating and cooling about half as well as it ought to be (heated air, with a strip-style system like ours, should come out of the vents between 90 and 100F, ours is in the 78-82 range; cooled air should be >15F below the ambient indoor temperature, ours is 8-10F), which means that it's running twice as long as it ought to in order to normalize or maintain ambient temps.  On the upside, the element I put in the hot water tank draws its rated wattage, and only takes ten minutes to do the job after I take a long shower.

Free energy tip:  If nobody's home for more than 4 hours, turn the a/c or heat off - it takes less energy to re-heat or re-chill the house than it would to maintain the temperature in your absence.  Cats & dogs can handle the temporary climate fluctuations (after all, they survived for thousands of years outdoors); not sure how well fish tanks are for maintaining thermal status quo.

R40 in the attic:  Big plus (R30 is all that's necessary, but it was a freebie when I bought the house).
Subfloor insulation: Also a plus, but not as big a deal
Double-paned windows:  He said that good, well-sealed (vinyl, or vinyl-coated) single pane units are sufficient, but if you can get double-paned ones for a similar price, to go for it.  This is -so- not in the budget right now. . .

Eliminate direct sunlight on East/South/West windows.  Either put up awnings, greenery, or trellis-style stuff.

Shit I didn't know:  Ceiling fans only help if you're in the room with them.  I had thought that moving the air around would help normalize temps.

So, I'm going to be comparison shopping for 12-rated a/c units with heat pumps (probably a couple grand, but there's a $250 credit from TECO for upgrading/replacement).

Nyarg

Because the phrase "home equity loan" makes me break out in hives, I'm looking at alternatives to large amounts of financed crap.

The a/c thing is not something I'm sure is a "fix," it may simply be a "replace."  Okay, fine, I'll be looking at those next weekend.  In lieu of new windows, which is where the scary dollar amounts come in, I'm going to invest in a programmable thermostat (thanks for the idea, argylerockstar, and for the part number (GPMG8050, at Home Despot) yokes1971), and as long as I'm eyeballing stuff at the Despot, I may or may not pick up two or three packs of Insulated Window Film (70% sun/55% heat), model LES481 - for $150, I'd have enough to do every window in the house.